Policy Considerations for Twice-Exceptional Students

by Megan Foley-Nicpon & Akorede Teriba

Twice-exceptional students are those with an identified disability (e.g., ASD, SLD, ADHD) and high ability or academic talent. They are an underserved population in talented and gifted education that requires advocacy and legislative attention to meet their specific needs. Typically, twice-exceptional students’ disabilities are supported through Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) or 504 Accommodation Plans, but their talent domains may be overlooked for a host of reasons, one being the absence of federal mandates related to talented and gifted education. Federal mandates help districts generally fund and support students’ needs, independent of the socioeconomic status of their school and surrounding community. Researchers have found that upwards of 10% of the special education population could be considered twice-exceptional, so is it right to only address these students’ disability needs? The Jacob Javits Gifted & Talented Students Education Act provides support for talented students through various initiatives to increase achievement but does not offer the same level of protection as would a federal mandate. Instead, programming is the purview of the states, which leads to variable services, attention, and funding.

According to the Davidson Institute, some states (i.e., Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Oklahoma) fully fund and mandate talented and gifted programming; others mandate and partially fund, mandate but provide no funding, do not mandate but partially fund, or are not funded or mandated. Funding amounts vary widely, which exacerbates the disparity in services available. Four states (i.e., Colorado, Minnesota, Tennessee, West Virginia) specify twice-exceptional students in their identification practices, mandates, and policies. Fully funded and mandated state programs are examples of how national support could look for diverse populations of talented and gifted students, including those with disabilities.

Some school districts are engaging in exemplary work with twice-exceptional youth. For example, Montgomery County Public Schools, the largest school district in Maryland, has both a regulation and a policy that speak to twice-exceptionality. Their policy states the need to provide curriculum accommodations for twice-exceptional learners and principles are encouraged to reach out and work with their families. Ongoing training and professional learning opportunities include reference to twice-exceptional identification and programming.

In Iowa, the Waterloo Community School District has a formal description of twice-exceptional students and a program specifically for this population. They develop Personal Education Plans for the students that outline talent development methods and recommended accommodations. Their twice-exceptional program is one of eight district initiatives financially supported by the Waterloo Schools Foundation.

We encourage more school districts and states to develop policies for twice-exceptional students that specify best practices in talent identification and development. Universal screening is a necessary component of an equitable identification system and domain specific talent development opportunities need to be linked to what is assessed for participation. Once identified, schools could create student plans, like those in Waterloo, that include performance indicators, academic goals, and accommodations and services. Multidisciplinary teams could then track the progress of students’ strengths to supplement the support they receive for their disability through an IEP or 504 Plan.

Using culturally sensitive identification methods, adapting curriculum, and training educators to identify twice-exceptional students are practices critical to meeting their needs. Together, we can eradicate existing blind spots and improve educational experiences and opportunities of all our talented learners.

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Article Details
Policy Considerations for Twice-Exceptional Students
Megan Foley-Nicpon & Akorede Teriba
First Published September 9, 2022 Research Article
DOI: 10.1177/10762175221110943
Gifted Child Today

About the Authors

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Megan Foley-Nicpon is the Myron and Jacqueline Blank Endowed Chair and Director of the University of Iowa’s Belin-Blank Center, as well as a licensed psychologist and professor of Counseling Psychology. Dr. Foley-Nicpon’s research and clinical interests include assessment and intervention with high ability students with disabilities, and the social and emotional development of talented and diverse students. She regularly writes and presents about high ability, counseling psychology, and twice-exceptionality.

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Akorede Teriba is an Assistant Professor of Counseling Psychology at the University of North Dakota. Dr. Teriba conducts research related to human flourishing (e.g., perseverance and passion for long-term goals, growth mindset), social determinants of health (e.g., poverty, identity marginalization), and the role of emotion regulation and self-efficacy in the community. He advocates for the development of mental health infrastructures and the utilization of positive psychology interventions to increase community well-being